Chapter 1

The sky over City B was gloomy. It had been sunny in the morning, but now it looked like it might rain at any moment.

Shi Yu stood by the window, hesitating whether he should go outside. If he didn’t, the food in his fridge would soon run out. But if he did… he was afraid of what he might run into.

It wasn’t that he was overly paranoid—it was just that this world was too dangerous. It was nothing like the peaceful world he used to live in.

Strange and scary things hid everywhere outside. Ordinary people couldn’t see them, but a small mistake could mean death. When Shi Yu first arrived in this world, it felt like the sky had fallen. Especially when he realized which world he had landed in.

“Chaotic Evil Thoughts”—wasn’t that the horror novel he had read before?

Just thinking about the plot made Shi Yu shiver.

“Chaotic Evil Thoughts” was a very popular horror novel in his original world. As soon as it was published, it went viral and topped the trending charts, becoming the top novel of the year.

But it was not light-hearted at all. It was based on Lovecraft-style horror.

The story was about Sang Huaiyu, heir to a rich family, who lost his family in a strange incident when he was young. After accidentally merging with a strange item, he gained supernatural powers. He then joined a group of other powered people to fight mysterious dangers and uncover the truth of the world.

Because Sang Huaiyu was handsome and gentle, many powerful characters were drawn to him. Fu Nanyao, the pillar of the psychic association, saw him as his salvation. A gifted doctor named Shen Yan silently fell in love with him. Even Han Chuyi, a childhood friend, ended up liking him too. He was basically a walking heartthrob.

But the most terrifying part wasn’t just that he attracted everyone—it was that the powerful psychic Sang Huaiyu, seen as the “Light of Humanity,” wasn’t human at all!

Readers had gone crazy shipping the characters. But near the end, when Sang Huaiyu suddenly dropped his act and revealed his true form as an evil god, they were all stunned.

Before Shi Yu was pulled into the novel, the story had just reached the part where Sang Huaiyu got bored and stopped pretending—right at the most dangerous part of the plot. Then the author stopped updating, leaving readers in horror.

Recalling all this, Shi Yu took a deep breath. He stared at the empty fridge for a while before finally making a decision.

Fine, he’d go out. He’d just buy more groceries this time. If he didn’t run into any strange creatures, great. If he did—well, better than starving at home.

Why not just order food delivery?

Shi Yu twitched his mouth. In a world full of creepy horrors, the chance of something going wrong with food delivery was way higher than just going out himself.

He even remembered a past incident involving a haunted delivery.

Rubbing his hungry stomach, Shi Yu thought he had survived this long only by being super careful. But he also frowned a little—his appetite had suddenly gotten much bigger this week. He had stocked up enough food for ten days (thanks to his livestreaming gig), yet it was all gone already.

Was it because spring was here and he was eating more?

The odd thought passed quickly. Shi Yu shook his head, changed into a hoodie, carefully put on a face mask, and took the trash outside.

To avoid attracting anything creepy, he always dressed to cover up as much skin as possible. But he couldn’t avoid using public transport. He had only been in this world for half a year, and all the money he made from livestreaming went into daily expenses. He couldn’t afford a car.

Luckily, there was a bus stop just 100 meters from his apartment.

Standing at the stop, Shi Yu looked up at the dark clouds and told himself to shut all his windows tight when he got home. This kind of gloomy weather always meant trouble in the novel.

He gripped his phone tightly. When the bus arrived, he carefully checked the route number and the stop name before getting on, pulling his hoodie down over his head.

Not long after Shi Yu left, Bus 405 had driven about 200 meters. Far away, at a delivery station, Shen Yan arrived and found that it had already closed.

There was a notice on the door saying the owner had ended the lease yesterday and returned to their hometown.

“This is the last place the undeliverable package was tracked to?”

“Yes, Doctor Shen,” someone replied.

“After Mr. Sang dealt with most of the power in the undeliverable package, it only had 10% energy left. But it was tricky and pretended to be powerless, which made us let down our guard. It escaped during the confusion… We later discovered it hid inside a delivery van and was brought here.”

The person speaking sounded ashamed.

Mr. Sang had already handled the most dangerous part. The rest of the work was supposed to be theirs. But at the final step, they messed up and let the cursed item escape.

Even so, just hearing the name “Mr. Sang” made the young member of the Psychic Association blush with excitement.

Although Mr. Sang wasn’t part of their group or any official organization, everyone deeply respected him.

He was the strongest supernatural person in City B, and no one could count how many horror cases he had solved this past year. He had saved many members of the association. To the new recruits, he was like a god.

When Shen Yan heard Sang Huaiyu’s name, he was visibly moved. But when he looked at the ashamed team member again, his face turned cold.

“This really was your mistake.”

His voice was icy, and that single sentence made the tall young man lower his head in shame.

Their Psychic Association wasn’t an official group, but it was formed by spiritual experts and powered individuals to protect the city from supernatural threats. And now, because of carelessness, they had let one escape.

Shen Yan said, “The undeliverable package survives by attaching itself to people. Now that it’s in a residential area, it’s even harder to find.”

Before, they had isolated the area to trap it. Now, it was hiding among ordinary people again. Even with only 10% energy left, it was twice as dangerous.

The worst part? The package looked exactly like a normal delivery box. Unless someone tried to throw it away—and it came back, draining a third of their life energy—it was almost impossible to notice.

Each time someone tried to discard the package, it would come back and take one-third of their life force. After three times, the person would be completely consumed and become fuel for the cursed item.

Before anyone even noticed it, it had already taken many lives this way.

Now, the biggest problem was that before the delivery station shut down, the delivery person had already taken the package and dropped it off. They had no idea who had taken it home.

Zhao Wen knew he had caused a huge mess. But what mattered most now was finding the cursed package.

“Doctor Shen, what should we do now?”

The nearby streets were empty. When they looked up, there were three or four apartment complexes close together.

“The delivery tracking info is still there. Let’s check them one by one. There’s no better way, really.”
Humans always seem powerless when facing something strange. The association member nodded and quickly went to make preparations.

Shen Yan frowned slightly and casually glanced at the bus passing by before looking away.

“By the way, don’t forget to apply for a search warrant.”
It’s hard to gain residents’ trust in residential areas without proper documentation, which makes searching more difficult.

Dr. Shen’s words were met with a quick response from Zhao Wen.
“Yes, Dr. Shen.”

The group split up. Two members went to apply for search documents, while Shen Yan took off his gloves and entered a nearby apartment complex with the remaining team members.

Shi Yu had only planned to buy some basic supplies, but he didn’t expect to feel so hungry again even though he had lunch. After getting off the bus, he felt hungry once more.

Inside the supermarket, he saw all kinds of delicious food—he wanted everything.

Shi Yu: …
Stupid cravings! How much money am I going to spend like this every day?!

When he got to the food section, he couldn’t move on. After staring at it for a while, he actually spent almost half a month’s living expenses.

Shi Yu: !!!

Looking at his nearly empty bank account, he forced a smile.
Well… Money spent is money spent. At least it’s for food.

He told himself he’d just stream more often this month to make up for it. Besides, today’s shopping could also be seen as stocking up for next week. Looking at his full cart, Shi Yu felt strangely satisfied after mourning his wallet, already planning what to eat tonight.

With so many ingredients, I can finally cook a proper meal tonight.

But while shopping was fun, going back home was a pain. Carrying two big bags, he had to stop and rest every few steps. The short 100-meter walk from the bus stop took him 20 minutes.

He paused to catch his breath and wiped the sweat from his forehead. Then he glanced to the side.

At first, it was just a random glance—but something felt off.

Huh?

When did a black SUV appear in front of the opposite building’s entrance?

It stood out, but no one was inside. This was an old residential complex with no underground parking—everyone parked outside. Shi Yu didn’t remember seeing that SUV when he left.

He stared at it for a couple seconds, then looked away. Don’t be nosy.
In a world full of strange things, curiosity can kill you. That saying was absolutely true here.

After resting for a minute, he finally made it to the elevator and safely got home.

Once in his living room, he relaxed, stretched his shoulders, and put down the bags. He checked the windows and security cameras—everything looked fine.

Another safe day. Time to eat in peace.

Meanwhile, across the street, Shen Yan and his team were frowning. They could feel something wasn’t right.

They had already searched two complexes but didn’t find any suspicious or dangerous packages. So they moved to this third complex.

At first, it was a routine check. But the moment they entered the building, something felt off.

Too quiet.

It was late afternoon—the usual busy time when kids came home and grandparents waited outside. They had seen people outside the fitness square just now.

But the moment they entered the building, the outside noise was muffled, like it had been cut off.

“Old buildings don’t have this good soundproofing, do they?” Wang Shan rubbed his arms, feeling a chill.

Shen Yan didn’t reply. He closed his eyes—his spiritual senses became sharper as they moved up.

He finally caught a faint trace of blood among the mix of normal human presence.

“Seventeenth floor.”

They looked at each other and quickly rushed up the stairs.

But right after that, Shen Yan’s spiritual sense suddenly cut off.

Wang Shan kicked open the door. Inside the rental apartment, they found a man slumped on the sofa, completely drained of blood, like a dried-up shell.

No package was found.

“It’s gone.”
Shen Yan spoke briefly.

Only two minutes had passed since he sensed it. The strange entity had already drained the victim and disappeared.

“So sneaky!”

Wang Shan cursed and made a call to have the scene handled.

Back in his own apartment, Shi Yu had just finished putting away groceries. He pulled out ingredients he’d prepared earlier—he had been tempted by all the food in the store and decided to make cola chicken wings and pumpkin soup.

He had been craving them for ages.

Most people in this world drank nutrition packs instead of eating real food. Even in the supermarket, most things were instant meals. So when fresh meat was finally restocked, he grabbed a bunch. Today, he was determined to eat well and reward himself.

With that thought, he put on his mask like usual, sat in front of his computer, and turned on the webcam. As his stream went live, he greeted his fans with a smile.

“Good afternoon.”

“Hey Yu Yu, what are you cooking today?”

Shi Yu’s online name was “SharkBlowingBubbles,” and his fans just called him “Yu Yu.” He used to feel embarrassed, but since he wore a mask and no one knew who he was, he eventually got used to it.

Now, even as a straight guy, he didn’t blink when fans called him by that cute name.

He lifted the ingredients in front of the camera.
“I just went shopping and found some fresh chicken wings. So today, we’re making cola chicken wings!”

Chat: “Yay! Sounds delicious!”

Most people watching were office workers who relied on nutrition packs to save time, but they loved watching streamers cook and eat real meals.

While many streamers on the Catgoo platform did food content, most just visited restaurants. Shi Yu stood out by cooking and eating everything himself, which earned him a loyal fanbase.

He started with only a dozen viewers, but now—after half a year of streaming—he had tens of thousands of followers. Many fans even watched his cooking videos while eating their own meals.

“Cola chicken wings are actually really simple.”
“Just prep the ingredients, clean the wings, marinate them a little, fry both sides until golden, then pour in the cola and reduce it down.”

When the last step finished, the rich aroma almost seemed to seep through the screen.

Shi Yu’s stomach was already growling. While frying the wings, he couldn’t take his eyes off them.

He didn’t know why, but lately, he just couldn’t handle being hungry.
While cooking, his stomach had felt totally empty.

“Looks amazing!”
“Streamer, try it for us!”

Someone sent a virtual yacht gift. Shi Yu smiled and snapped out of his hunger trance.

“Alright, the pumpkin soup is still simmering. Let’s eat the wings first.”

He adjusted the camera, showed the full plate, then picked up a piece.

The sweet, savory cola flavor filled his mouth, and the tender meat fell off the bone. He quickly ate one wing.

Chat: “You’re eating so well, Yu Yu!”

Since he didn’t show his face, viewers only saw his fair hands and the wings disappearing from the plate one by one. In no time, the plate was empty.

“Is the streamer eating more than usual?”
A regular viewer asked in chat.

He remembered that last time, Shi Yu hadn’t finished the wings and put half in the fridge. But this time, he ate them all.

Shi Yu felt the same. His appetite had definitely grown. And strangely…
He touched his stomach and frowned.

Even after eating a full plate of wings and rice… he still didn’t feel full.